Life, 1917-01-25 · page 27 of 40
Life — January 25, 1917 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This post-WWI page celebrates the elevated status of middle-aged English women, who gained newfound social respect through wartime contributions. The text argues that qualities previously undervalued—patience, tenderness, practical skill—suddenly became nationally valued, allowing these women to "come into her own." The satirical elements include: **"Seven Wonders of the World"**: A mock list juxtaposing trivial modern American concerns (Fifth Avenue traffic, Wall Street, musical comedy) with serious matters, suggesting American frivolousness. **"Rude"**: Europe's curt response to President Wilson—"You talk too much"—satirizes both European dismissiveness toward American diplomatic overtures and Wilson's verbose idealism. **Golf cartoon**: A stunt golfer joke about perspective/improvement, unrelated to the page's themes. The main satire targets the irony that England needed a war to recognize women's inherent value, questioning whether this recognition was genuinely about equality or merely wartime necessity.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE ROAD TO THE LAND OF MAKE BELIEVE Coming Into Her Own the terrible morass of misunderstand- HE middle-aged woman of Eng- ing in which both men and women fell land has found herself. Out of over a problem that really should have the war has come her mental and na- presented no serious difficulty. Now tional salvation. A great joy is in her out of the war has come a pure spirit heart. She is wanted for her own of a really higher racial communion. sake. It has been suddenly discovered, And the middle-aged woman has come in the national crisis, that every quality into her own. Is it not beautiful? It that goes to make for the highest nat- seems so to us. ural harmonies the middle-aged woman possesses in abundance. She has ex- The Seven Wonders of the perience; she has learned patience and humility. She is tender and. skilful World and enduring; and sentiment has come within her to have a real spiritual meaning. England’s women have hitherto not held the same place in Wall Street. what, for want of a hetter term, we The musical comedy. may call racial regard as the women Futurism. of America. In this country the suf- Villa. frage, for all practical purposes, has come as a natural consequence of Rude Stout Golfer: weit, canoie, 1'vE woman's demand for it. How different HE. substance. of Europe's answer: . TLAYTO TWO WEEKS HOW; CAN YOU SEE was England’s attitude before the war! to Mr. Wilson seems to be: ““y COULD TELL BETTER IF YOU'D TURN It was almost heart-breaking to see “You talk too much.” ‘SIDE VIEW.” HE German food supply. The traffic on Fifth Avenue. The modern wife. comicbooks.com